Oman ranked third in UN E-Govt Survey

Muscat: The Sultanate of Oman has advanced to the third rank in the Arab region and among GCC states, while globally it maintains the 50th rank in the #EGovernmentSurvey 2020 of the United Nations, in which 193 countries participated.

In the Online service index, the Sultanate has been ranked 58th globally and fourth in the Arab World.

In the telecommunication infrastructure index, the Sultanate has been ranked 15th globally and second in the Arab World.

In the telecommunication infrastructure index, the Sultanate has been ranked 15th globally and second in the Arab World.

In the human capital index, the Sultanate has been ranked 69th globally and fourth in the Arab World.

In the e-participation index, the Sultanate has been ranked 50th globally.

Europe is the region with the highest proportion of countries providing online services for people in vulnerable situations (95 percent), followed by the Americas (72 percent), Asia (69 percent), Oceania (45 percent), and Africa (44 percent).

Four of the six GCC countries are in the very high E-Government Development Index group; the United Arab Emirates is ranked highest, followed by Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Bahrain. Kuwait and Qatar are in the highest (HV) rating class of the high EGDI group.

All of these countries have highly developed telecommunications infrastructure.

Denmark, Finland, and the Republic of Korea lead the 2022 digital government ranking of the 193 United Nations Member States, scoring the highest when it comes to the scope and quality of online services, the status of telecommunication infrastructure, and existing human capacity. Runners-up are New Zealand, Sweden, Iceland, Australia, Estonia, the Netherlands, the United States, the United Kingdom, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, Japan, and Malta.

Owing to remarkable improvements in telecommunications infrastructure and human capacity development, the global E-Government Development Index (EGDI) average has increased overall. Eight countries have moved to the high EGDI group for the first time: Belize, Côte d’Ivoire, Guyana, Lebanon, Nepal, Rwanda, Tajikistan, and Zambia. Overall, 68.91 percent of Member States are at the high or very high EGDI level.

Although the data shows general increases in online services for vulnerable groups, evidence of pervasive digital divides is stark. All of the countries with the lowest EGDI rankings are those in special and developing situations. A range of human-centered issues related to access, affordability, general abilities, digital literacy and language are explored in the 2022 Survey.

According to the 2022 Survey, the number of countries providing digital services in the education sector has increased by 22 percent, from 104 to 114 countries. However, while the adoption of digital solutions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to this growth, there has been uneven progress across different regions and different income levels. The recent Transforming Education Summit placed a spotlight on the critical role that equitable access to digital learning can play in advancing sustainable development.

The 2022 Survey reflects further improvement in global trends in e-government development and the transitioning of many countries from lower to higher EGDI levels. In this edition, 60 countries have very high EGDI values ranging from 0.75 to 1.00,1 in comparison with 57 countries in 2020—a 5.3 percent increase for this group. A total of 73 countries have high EGDI values of 0.50 to 0.75, and 53 countries are part of the middle EGDI group with values between 0.25 and 0.50. Seven countries (one less than in 2020) have low EGDI values (0.00 to 0.25).